Review of Coalisland boundary is needed

SDLP Torrent Councillor Malachy Quinn has called on Mid-Ulster District Council to review the town boundary of Coalisland in relation to the Local Area Plan and development strategy.

The council is understood to be currently working towards a strategy across all its main towns across the district. 

Councillor Quinn said: “After talking to local businesses over the past number of weeks, both inside and outside the town, it’s clear to me that the existing definition of the Town Centre is not suitable to the on-going development of Coalisland.

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“The current definition does not take into account stores like Springisland on the Washingbay Road or indeed the enterprise centre on the Dungannon road and this may lead to them being disadvantaged in terms of town schemes and initiatives especially as our town strategy will lead us up to 2030.

SDLP's Malachy QuinnSDLP's Malachy Quinn
SDLP's Malachy Quinn

“This plan is about helping develop the town for the better, helping new and old businesses alike, bringing life back into our retail outlets and to leave out two very important sites is unacceptable.

“Both these areas lie within 30 meters of the existing boundary so it doesn’t take much thinking to see the advantages of extending this.

“If our town is to develop over the next decade we need to protect growing businesses especially with the effects of Brexit still to come.”

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Councillor Quinn said he has spoken to the council’s planning department this week about the matter.

“While they have told me that the current council continue to use the Town boundary agreed by Dungannon council back 2009, they will look into reviewing this before the next stage of the development plan and have assured me that local business will have their say on how the town is developed for the future,” he continued.

He added that he was “looking forward” to those meetings and consultation and seeing Coalisland being developed for the better of all its residents.

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